Gigi Hadid Says Zayn Malik Typically Takes Her Mom's Side in Family Discussions: 'He's Smart'

"At first he was like, 'How do I get a word in edgewise?' But now he is very comfortable," Gigi Hadid said of Zayn Malik at her family gatherings

Gigi hadid
Photo: Collier Schorr

Zayn Malik knows how to work a room at a Hadid family gathering.

In a cover story for Harper's Bazaar's August 2021 issue, out July 27, Gigi Hadid revealed her typical family dynamic when they have spirited discussions, adding that her singer boyfriend, 28, has found his voice among the Hadids.

Gigi, 26, is the daughter of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum Yolanda Hadid and Mohamed Hadid. The former couple also shares daughter Bella Hadid, 24, and son Anwar Hadid, 22, who both model, as well.

"This is not to say that I don't have a heart or Bella doesn't have a brain, but when dealing with family stuff and world issues, my mom calls me the brain and Bella the heart," explained Gigi to Harper's Bazaar. "My brother is half and half. Whatever the family dinner-table discussion is, Bella will be very emotional and compassionate, and I'm sitting there pulling up charts and infographics, speaking very calmly."

"My mom is just very Dutch and to the point. And my dad's a storyteller — a bit goofy, but always connecting it back to, 'Oh, you've heard the old Palestinian saying ...' " Gigi added.

As for where Malik fits in: "At first he was like, 'How do I get a word in edgewise?' But now he is very comfortable. He speaks his mind. When he's in the middle of a family thing and everyone's like, 'Zayn, whose side are you on?' he's charming. He's usually on my mom's side, so he's smart in that sense."

Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid
Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid. Mike Coppola/Getty
Gigi hadid
Collier Schorr

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Gigi and Malik welcomed their first baby together, daughter Khai, back in September. In a Vogue cover story earlier this year, the new mom detailed her natural home birth, which Yolanda, Bella, Malik, a local midwife and her assistant were present for.

Gigi hadid
Collier Schorr

RELATED VIDEO: Gigi Hadid Reveals She Had a Home Birth and Zayn Malik Helped Deliver Their Daughter Khai

"I had to dig deep. I knew it was going to be the craziest pain in my life, but you have to surrender to it and be like, 'This is what it is.' I loved that," said Gigi of giving birth. "There definitely was a point where I was like, 'I wonder what it would be like with an epidural, how it would be different.' My midwife looked at me and was like, 'You're doing it. No one can help you. You're past the point of the epidural anyway, so you'd be pushing exactly the same way in a hospital bed.' "

"I know my mom and Zayn and Bella were proud of me, but at certain points I saw each of them in terror. Afterward, Z and I looked at each other and were like, 'We can have some time before we do that again,' " recalled Gigi.

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